When his Texas Longhorns begin spring football practice today, his staff will install a new up-tempo offense with the goal of snapping the ball faster, covering yards faster, and scoring points faster. There will be no more huddles. The time for talking about things is over.

This is the latest in a series of copycat moves for Brown, and this one needs to work. In recent years, he's tried to make his defense play like the New York Jets (when they were good) and his offense control the ball like teams from the Southeastern Conference (before Johnny Manziel), and neither imitation worked. Now Brown has chosen to push the pace like Oregon and Oklahoma State, which is appropriate.

Because in more ways than one, Brown is running out of time.

Earlier this winter, Brown told a group of recruits he intends to coach at UT for the duration of his current contract, which runs through 2020. He very well might. But before he makes it to the next decade, he needs to worry about making it to 2014. And to get that far, he'll need to prove something this fall.

This is Brown's third spring since the implosion of his once-powerful program forced him to overhaul his staff and rebuild his team. During the first two years, he preached that things were getting better, even if all the progress wasn't noticeable. Often, it wasn't.

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But in a few months, the masses are going to demand evidence. With 19 starters returning from last year's 9-4 team, the Longhorns no longer can claim to be young and inexperienced. They no longer can call expectations of winning a conference and playing in a Bowl Championship Series game unrealistic.

Even Brown repeatedly targeted 2013 as the year his grand plan was all supposed to come together. Now, it had better do so.

After UT's regular-season finale in December, Brown received a public vote of confidence from school president Bill Powers, who is in fact one of Brown's staunchest allies. The coach also enjoys the unqualified backing of athletic director DeLoss Dodds, who likewise is supported by Powers.

But as a group of state legislators pointed out this week, Powers is having a difficult enough time as it is preserving his job security. It's no secret that Powers and Gov. Rick Perry own conflicting views on the future of the university, and Powers currently clings to just a slim measure of support among the UT system's nine-member board of regents. Three of those regents' terms expired in February, and Perry gets to appoint their successors.

How that power struggle will ultimately affect the athletic department is yet to be determined. But considering everything going on around him, Brown would be well-served by keeping his team's level of dysfunction at a minimum.

And when the pace of his offense starts lagging in practice during the next few weeks? If he tells the players to hurry, they better know that he means it.

mfinger@express-news.net

Twitter: @mikefinger

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What lies ahead

As Texas heads into what could be a pivotal season for coach Mack Brown and the football program as a whole, the Longhorns open spring practice today hoping to find answers to the following questions:

Is up-tempo the answer? After two years of emphasizing controlling the clock with a running game, the Longhorns are switching to a no-huddle offense under new play-caller Major Applewhite. It might look like grasping at straws, but it also might work.

Is the defense still as terrible as it looked? Much of the blame for UT’s worst statistical defensive season in history was placed on young linebackers and tackles. They’re older now, and they’d better start playing like it.

Can David Ash continue to improve? Texas’ quarterback was by no means a superstar as a sophomore in 2012, but he was a lot better than he was the year before. A similar step forward this year could make him a genuine difference-maker.

— Mike Finger

UT spring football

The Texas Longhorns open spring drills for the 2013 season today in Austin:

Field time: NCAA rules allow for 15 practices, which includes a spring game.

Time off: Team will be off during spring break, which goes from March 11-16.